Waikato Herald
  • Waikato Herald home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Locations

  • Hamilton
  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Matamata & Piako
  • Cambridge
  • Te Awamutu
  • Tokoroa & South Waikato
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Weather

  • Thames
  • Hamilton
  • Tokoroa
  • Taumarunui
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Waikato News

Hamilton family forever grateful to Ronald McDonald House Charities

Hamilton News
13 May, 2019 04:12 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Hamish McLaughlin with his big brother Elliot and their mum and dad Haley and Patrick. The McLaughlin family spent almost 258 nights at Ronald McDonald House. Photo / Supplied

Hamish McLaughlin with his big brother Elliot and their mum and dad Haley and Patrick. The McLaughlin family spent almost 258 nights at Ronald McDonald House. Photo / Supplied

This week is the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) New Zealand Family Appeal Week.

The week is crucial in raising funds to help support families when their child is in a hospital away from home, during a difficult and stressful time.

To support the Family Appeal Week, RMHC launched #BuildAFort, a campaign that challenges New Zealanders to build a special home-made fort with their families, sharing their efforts on social media using the hashtag #BuildAFort, tagging @rmhcnewzealand and donating.

The aim is many forts will raise awareness of the family togetherness that RMHC New Zealand provides when a child is in hospital away from home.

During this year's appeal, the charity aims to raise $320,000 so it may continue to provide ongoing services for families with a child in hospital, like a comfortable en suite bedroom to sleep in close to their child, and home cooked dinners.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Hamilton family the McLaughlins have been staying with RMHC New Zealand on and off since July 2016 when their son Hamish, only three at the time, was diagnosed with an extremely rare form of acute myeloid leukaemia.

Hamish needed a bone marrow transplant, but there were no perfect matches on the worldwide bone marrow register.

As a result, Hamish underwent a half-matched transplant, donated by his dad in November 2016.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Although the transplant initially looked successful, the bone marrow graft had been lost a couple of months later, and Hamish had to undergo a second transplant in April 2017.

During this difficult time, Hamish's family stayed at Ronald McDonald House in Auckland, 125km away from home, while Hamish underwent surgery and therapy nearby in the National's Children's Hospital.

RMHC New Zealand provided them with accommodation and support, as well as schooling for Hamish's older brother Elliot, who was five at the time.

Hamish's mum Haley McLaughlin is thankful for the support of RMHC New Zealand.

"RMHC New Zealand provided the physical and emotional support we needed while going through such a difficult time in our lives.

It allowed us to keep our family together and meant that Hamish had his family by his side during intense treatment and for this we will be forever grateful."

In total, the family has spent almost 258 nights at Ronald McDonald House.

Hamish, now five, is in remission and started school in April.

To help local families like the McLaughlins stay together when their child needs treatment, donate to RMHC New Zealand by texting 'FORT' to 4483 (to donate $3), or by visiting www.rmhc.org.nz/donate.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Waikato News

Waikato Herald

'Please do not do it': Man inflicted intense pain on woman during violation

04 Jul 08:00 AM
Waikato Herald

Farmer's harrowing hours crushed beneath tractor

04 Jul 02:00 AM
Waikato Herald

'Shaken' ordeal: Bar worker confronted with gun in Hamilton robbery

04 Jul 01:02 AM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Waikato News

'Please do not do it': Man inflicted intense pain on woman during violation
Waikato Herald

'Please do not do it': Man inflicted intense pain on woman during violation

04 Jul 08:00 AM

Judge Tompkins said Michael Mead, 64, posed a 'very high risk' in the future.

Farmer's harrowing hours crushed beneath tractor
Waikato Herald

Farmer's harrowing hours crushed beneath tractor

04 Jul 02:00 AM
'Shaken' ordeal: Bar worker confronted with gun in Hamilton robbery
Waikato Herald

'Shaken' ordeal: Bar worker confronted with gun in Hamilton robbery

04 Jul 01:02 AM
'A f****** ugly mess': Gang boss' text after fatal hotbox attack on mate of 20 years
Waikato Herald

'A f****** ugly mess': Gang boss' text after fatal hotbox attack on mate of 20 years

04 Jul 12:24 AM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Waikato Herald e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Waikato Herald
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP